In Nicaragua, a Language Is Born
Since 1977, deaf children in Nicaragua have been creating an increasingly sophisticated system of hand signals to communicate.

Successive generations of children have, on their own, introduced new features that are found only in true languages, according to a report published today in Science.

"They're creating language out of gesture," says lead author Ann Senghas of Barnard College.
Many linguists regard Nicaraguan Sign Language, or NSL, as an important test case, because the language developed almost in isolation, and the first "speakers" are still alive.

Until the government opened a school for the deaf in 1977, deaf children in Nicaragua had been socially isolated. The students had little exposure to written language, and the school did not teach signing. Instead, the children invented the language largely on their own, with each generation building on what they learned from preceding students.

True languages get much of their power by breaking complex ideas into small pieces, such as words, which can then be rearranged to form innumerable new ideas.

"It's like building with bricks rather than building with clay," Senghas explains.

To look for this feature in NSL, the researchers played a cartoon showing a cat wobbling down a hill after eating a bowling ball. When asked to describe the motion, Spanish speakers who can hear often augment their verbal description with a gesture that combines the ideas of "wobbling" and "down" in a single motion.

Deaf students from the early years of the school use a similar gesture, which is a direct analog of the distinctive motion. In contrast, later generations of students separate the ideas of "wobbling" and "down" into distinct signs (bottom). Although the separation actually weakens the description, it is an important feature of abstract language, the researchers note.

Other research has shown that sign language uses some of the same brain machinery that hearing people use for speech. The new results strengthen the idea that this machinery is predisposed to abstract language even without being taught. "The fundamentals of language,” Senghas remarks, “can arise just from the way that children learn language."

Taiwan in talks on Nicaragua, Paraguay trade pacts
"Paraguay's President Nicanor Duarte is consulting with the other Mercosur members -- Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay -- about signing an FTA with Taiwan. "

Encouraged by the doubling of trade with Panama after signing a free trade agreement (FTA) with the Latin American nation, Taiwan is now negotiating FTAs with Nicaragua and Paraguay, the Board of Foreign Trade (BOFT) said yesterday.

"The second round of FTA talks with Nicaragua will be held in Taipei September 20-24. Nicaragua's vice minister of industry and commerce, Alejandro Arguello, will lead a 20-member delegation to Taipei for the talks," BOFT Deputy Director Wu Hsin-hua (§d·sµØ) said.

"Taiwan and Paraguay are also scheduled to hold their second round of FTA talks, following the first round of talks held in Asuncion on August 9," Wu said.

Those bilateral talks are scheduled to be held next January in Taipei.

Taipei signed its first FTA with Panama last year, with the agreement becoming effective from January this year.

In the first eight months of this year, Taiwan-Panama trade rose 116 percent to US$170 million, compared with US$40 million last year.

Between January and August this year, Taiwan's exports to Panama rose 103 percent, while Panama's exports to Taiwan increased 424 percent.

However, observers believe Taiwan's signing of an FTA with Paraguay may meet obstacles because Paraguay is a member of the South American Common Market (Mercosur), which requires its members to seek approval from other Mercosur members before completing an FTA.

"Paraguay's President Nicanor Duarte is consulting with the other Mercosur members -- Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay -- about signing an FTA with Taiwan," Wu said.

Panama, Nicaragua and Paraguay are among the 16 countries that recognize Taiwan.

Taiwan press reports have said China has asked Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay to persuade Paraguay to switch allegiance to Beijing, so these three countries are unlikely to approve an FTA between Paraguay and Taiwan.

Taiwan is also seeking an FTA with the United States, Japan, Singapore and other countries, but talks are moving slowly because these countries want to sign FTA pacts with China, the world's largest market.
 

Nicaragua Vows Firm Support for Taiwan U.N. Bid
Nicaraguan Ambassador to the United Nations Eduardo J. Sevilla Somoza said Monday that his country and many Taiwan allies will continue to push Taiwan's U.N. bid so that the voice of the 23 million people of the island can be heard internationally.

Sevilla made the remarks Monday when he attended the opening ceremony of the third world conference of the Global Alliance for Democracy and Peace, a group formed to pool the strength of overseas Chinese to uphold the ideals of democracy and peace.

He said Taiwan's allies in the United Nations will again speak up for the island's bid to join the organization at the U.N. General Assembly set to open Sept. 15, adding that he feels very proud to be able to speak up for the 23 million people of Taiwan.

He pointed out that because Taiwan has been shut out of the United Nations, the world body does not truly represent all people, adding that Nicaragua and Taiwan's many allies will continue to work hard so that Taiwan can realize its goal of joining the organization.

Noting that his father served as the first ambassador to the Republic of China some fifty years ago, Sevilla said that the two countries have held firm in their anti-communist stance. With the changing times, both countries have also faced the new challenges of anti-terrorism and globalization, he added.

Sevilla said that Taiwan's economic might has made it a regional leader. He also lauded Taiwan as a model of peace and democracy, adding that such a model deserves to be protected and supported. "Taiwan can trust Nicaragua's friendship," he said.

He also expressed appreciation for Taiwan's longstanding support and assistance to Nicaragua, saying that Taiwan's investment and trade have contributed a great deal to his nation's economic development.

This week's U.N. General Assembly will mark the 12th consecutive year that Taiwan tries to join the United Nations. It is expected to once again face obstruction of its bid by mainland China, which is a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council.